During the sales process, it is inevitable warranty periods
will be raised.I remember raving about
how the latest and greatest HVAC product led the industry with the longest
warranty period.Very often this only
lasted a short period of time as other Manufacturer’s would continue to match
warranties with their line.Things often
got out of hand as warranties have reached ‘limited lifetime’ on parts like
compressors or heat exchangers.So, who
wins when things reach the extreme?

Let me tell you a quick story as an example.Let’s say Eleanor Rigby calls Joey Bag
O’Donut's HVAC to install a mechanical system. Eleanor, being an elderly and
lonely homeowner, was wooed into the solution that would provide the most
comfort in her twilight years.Since
she spends a lot of time at home, and every summer seems to be warmer than the
last, Mrs. Rigby spared no expense on her new multi-zone ductless heat pump.She wanted to make sure her comfort was
protected with the industry’s highest 12 year limited warranty, and keeping her
electric bills low were her priorities as she is on a fixed income these days.Joey did a great job; his workmanship is
second to none! They should really consider re-branding his company; the name gives a bad impression…

Let’s fast forward 10 years.Mrs. Rigby took great care of her system, having Joey’s service
department return every year for maintenance.This kept her unit under manufacturer warranty and operating at its peak
efficiency.Unfortunately, something
happened last night with the system and Eleanor had to call for emergency
service.

Contractor
Perspective

When Joey’s service tech showed up, he knew exactly what
happened.Eleanor was a great customer
and he wanted nothing more than to tell her it was going to be an easy
fix.This time it wasn’t.The control board failed after 10 years of
impeccable service, due to the compressor shorting out.This was a long time for a heat pump that ran
almost continuously year round!Joey’s
tech knows this type of work will take some time, and labor (along with the
older R-22 Refrigerant) is not covered under the manufacturer warranty.So, he delivers the bad news to the
homeowner.This is a tough conversation
for the technician, particularly since he knows they will not make any money on
parts.When covering Mrs. Rigby’s
options, he explains replacement of the system makes the most sense as
technology has come a long way in the last 10 years.

The contractor is not able to make any money on
the parts under warranty, time on paperwork, nor the sale of a new system if
repaired, which could be the best option for Mrs. Rigby.

Homeowner Perspective

Mrs. Rigby is always on top of things.This includes scheduling maintenance and
paying her bills.How could she do
everything right and still have this problem?She was so frustrated, she only bought this system 10 years ago and the
unit is still under warranty!How can
Joey’s tech be saying she should replace a system that has 2 years left from
the manufacturer?She knows she should
weigh her options, but realistically she has to go with the cheapest, and this
is to fix the system.Eleanor just
wasn’t budgeting for such an expense.

An expensive repair gets the now ‘low efficient
system’ operating once again.

Manufacturer’s
Perspective

An unhappy customer can be a lot to handle.The system is under warranty, installed to
their specifications, and has been maintained every year.Looks like the brand needs to supply a
compressor and control board for this old unit.Let’s hope the distributors are able to locate old stock in their
warehouse because shipping these parts from overseas or cross country can take
weeks!A loyal customer like Mrs. Rigby
should not have to wait weeks to be comfortable.Warranty parts are a tough thing to budget,
even when failure of these systems are so rare.After all, 10 years of operation is hardly a manufacturer defect!Is the Contractor sure this is what was wrong
– hate for this to come back and bite them if the repairs now show another
larger issue.

Another lost opportunity to install the latest
design in Mrs. Rigby’s home, who could have undoubtedly touched many leads when
she talks about it at her church.How
many years before this consumer is presented with a repair vs. replace option
again?Will she blame the brand for the
recent service costs?

So, who wins in this story?

We could argue all sides come out on the losing end with
higher warranties, a perspective that I never had when selling systems.Although this may help in the sales process,
is every factor considered when presenting the ‘highest warranty in the
industry’?

Imagine this: you go out to your local entertainment big-box
store and purchase the top of the line “HUMONGOUS” television. When you get home, you don’t think anything
about it and just go ahead plugging it directly into the wall socket, right? What’s that you say, ludicrous? Of course, we would only plug that piece of
beautiful technology into a UL rated surge protector!

So, I gave it away in the first paragraph: a UL rated surge
protector. But, don’t you want to know
why? Or what happens if you don’t? Anyone that knows me has heard me say that I
usually ‘learn the hard way – at least once!’
So, when a top-end ductless installation went wrong after months of
perfect operation, I had to ask the question, why this one?

You see, poor Mr. Jones’ house lost power during an
electrical storm. The fact his cable box
and other minor electronics failed should have been a giveaway as to what happened. Everyone knows when these electronic boards
are put together in the factory they come with little canisters attached. In these canisters is a specific amount of
smoke, and power fluctuations have a way of letting this smoke out. No smokey = No worky.

Unfortunately (depending on the view here), this high end
ductless system was resilient. The unit
would turn on, operate for about a minute or two, and then shut down with no
error codes or reason. Frustrating,
right? So, we call the tech support line from the house and they determine I must
replace the main control board – parts and labor (my generosity as part of the
install) warrantied.

Two days later, yes it snows in New England and it would
have been longer if this was in 2015, I return with the part. Install the latest and greatest control
board, smearing white heat sink paste all over anything within eyesight, and…no
luck! Another call determines a
combination of control boards should be replaced together. Thanks for that one OEM Rep! Another few days later, replace the boards,
and once again the same symptoms. This
time, I have to offer the customer a new condenser.

My Preference: The Intermatic AG3000

So I start to think, what could I have done differently to
avoid an act of god? Boy, if I had a
solution to all of those questions. But
then it hit me, a surge protector! In
order to pass the electrical inspection, and my anal electrician, said surge protector
must be UL listed (this adds to the price).
There are many models that attach to either the outdoor disconnect
(weather tight casing) or into the main panel. I prefer the models that have an indicator
light, telling the homeowner if they are still protected. Either way, this would take the surge and not
your new high-efficient HVAC equipment.
This is not a code requirement, so often gets overlooked. Besides, your equipment that just cost you at
least three times your big screen television is not sexy and tucked away in
some basement or behind the overgrown shrubs.
Spend the extra few dollars and protect the investment in your comfort! I think I may start tying my labor warranties
to the installation of a surge protector, or just make it part of the
installation price. Just like condensate
traps on furnaces, or liquid line filter driers in condensers, if this becomes
commonplace why would an OEM not just install these at the factory? Imagine how many ECM or condenser control boards
they warranty over the years?!

How do you know if you should install a
ductless mini-split, or upgrade your air-conditioner to a heat-pump and create
a dual-source application during replacement this Winter? I have been asked this countless times over the past week! I personally
always prefer the option of multiple fuel sources, particularly since energy
prices have been all over the place during the last decade. Fortunately, using
averaged energy prices, there is some simple math to figure out if an
aggressive assessment should be made for a dual-source heat pump application,
based on equations from ACCA's Manual H: "Heat Pump Systems: Principles
and Applications". First, you will need the average energy costs for
the selected fuels, and then plug the information into the equations
below. This will provide your "break-even COP", or the point
where operating the heat pump will cost the same as the other source. You
can then take the calculated Coefficient of Performance (COP) and see what
temperature the heat pump will be operating at; the lower the better!

I completed a little research for you, so
let us insert the recent average prices into the Natural Gas, Oil, and Propane
equations to see if the investment in a heat pump will make sense during
replacement, or become your primary source of heat – and to what temperature.

As you can see, if installing a 96%
Natural Gas furnace, the Break-Even COP would be 3.9. Based on the
Heating Performance Data for Fujitsu’s most efficient 12K RLS2 Heat Pump, it
would need to be above 60F outdoors for the cost to operate the heat pump to be
cheaper than the Natural Gas Furnace (see data at bottom, assuming 70F Indoor
Temperature).

Not all homes in MA are lucky to have
access to a Natural Gas supply. There are more than enough Oil Tanks out
there to keep the hundreds of delivery companies busy during most New England
winters. As you can see in the equation for oil, a resulting break-even
COP of 2.6 indicates a significant savings can be realized. Based on installing
an extremely efficient 87% oil furnace and the same heat pump performance data,
the heat pump would still be cheaper to operate as low as 20F. Of course,
you must worry about the output of the heat pump at that low ambient, and in
order to feel comfortable you will need to calculate the Thermal Balance Point.

If you decide to install a Propane tank
you could realize the same efficiencies as the natural gas furnaces out there,
but the increased costs in fuel/delivery is currently higher than oil, particularly
when including a recent oil price plunge. As you can see, the break even
COP for installing a heat pump add-on above a 96% Propane Furnace is only 1.45.
This is even lower than the Oil application, resulting in a break-even COP of
-15F, proving the recommendation of a more thorough calculation into the
Thermal Balance Point and investment costs for going to Dual Source.

With the
recent technological advancements in the HVAC industry in controls and
conventionally ducted VRF's like the Carrier GreenSpeed, break even COP's and
Thermal Balance Points can be driven even lower. This makes Dual Source
Heat pump applications more attracting to New England homeowners, despite
recent electric rate hikes. Some contractors are still installing
electric supplemental heat, hopefully in stages, for low-ambient
operation. Although not any more efficient than the heat strips it
replaced, the new heat pumps could save more than enough above the temperature
of the defrost cycle to still be worth it. I would still prefer
dual-source, you know these energy companies will not be leaving any money on
the table over the long run!